The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1887-07-14
THE MANDOLIN.
A Pleasing Italian Musical Instrumen
that Is Just Now In Fashion.

The mandolin is the reigning fash
| ionable caprice. having quite superseded
the banjo in the esteem of the ladies.
That it should have done SO is by no
means strange, for it IS really charm
ing little instrument when at all de-
Gently played. is not very difficult TO
learn, and has good dead more style
and finish about it than the banjo has.
However the latter may be adorned
with nickel-plating. mother-of-pearl.
and all sorts of gaudy ornamentation.
it has plebeian look about it and sng-
gests the idea of q field-hand in bis
Sunday suit
The only unpleasant feature about it
to the learner is the knife-blade-like
sharpness of its fine wire strings. There
are eight strings, in pairs, all OF steel
wire. Two pairs are wound with Ger
man silver, and are not so cruel rs the
others, but unwound four, hardly thicker
than horse hairs, seem to cut to the
bone the finger ends that press them
down upon the frcts. OF course that
pain and trouble ends when each
finger of the left hand is tipped with =
bony, callous spot, and one must expect
some such trouble in forming close
acquaintance with any stringed instru-
ment. When nature has provided that
protection, the mandolin player, II an
expert, can produce some very pleasing
effects by producing the tones by per.
cussion on the strings over the frots,
instead of by s.rumming with q bit OF
tortoise she'll held between the thumb
and foreiinger of the right hand, whicE
is the ordinary way of playing.
The Spanish mandola is much like
the Italian mandolin its gen.
eral features, but has important
differences from it nevertheless Its
body is shallower, shaped more like the
bowl of spoon than the half of an egg
divided lengthwise, which is the form
of the instrument beloved in Naples
and Rome; its strings are Of catgut in
stead of steel, and its tone is not 50
sharp and incisive. Either mandola Oh
mandolin, however, has q surprising
volume of sound for SO small body.
and dominates pleasingly the tones o.
a guitar. or even those OF a piano
Expert players have q way Of main.
tanning an increasing tremolando by
keeping the little instrument in con-
stanrly quiyering motion while they are
executing solo. that at least looks as
If it would be rather hard to effect and
harder vet to continue for any length o.
time, but the lengthening of vibrationi
thus achieved prettily supplies the lacE
of supporting instrument The power
of controlling the volume of sound in 9
crescendo or dIminuendo possessed by 8
skillful performer is really surprising
and extremely effective in rendition o.
the peculiar passionate and sensuou!
music to which the mandolin is bes
adapted.
While the mandolin is easy to learn
up to certain point, it is, like al
seemingly simple instruments. very
difficult to develop to its highest artistic
capabilities, and the Italian who hai
achieved complete mastery of it no
only very Justly respects himself highly
but is even respected in an extraordinar.
degree by his countrymen. The bcs
PLAYERS are said to come from Naples
where q native who does not Mt leas
think that he can play upon the man
: dolin is curiosity. Here in New 1orl
wo have not many who deservedly ranl
high as experts. Prof. Dominica Tip
aldi is regarded as G very correct ant
artistic performer, but in expression ant
delicacy of tone shading Signor +: A
Errlco, who is proprietor OF an ltaiiaI
art and curiosity store in John street
and only an amateur mandollnist, !
!, deemed by critics the most FINISHED
artist here. But inferior players tint
as much employment as tney want IL
teaching the mandolin to the youn'
mon and women of Gotham's "uppe
ten," and from present indications tn
instrument will be the rage when iasn
ion returns to the town with the earl
frosts. e,-
A good mandolin costs from SO
$50. and all procurable here are I'm
ported from Naples.-M T. Sun